Discernment
by TroutyHawk
Summary: As pieces begin to finally fall in to place in the life of Sam Evans and his wife Mercedes, a strange turn of events will flip everything he has come to know upside down when he realizes he has more questions than answers when recent happenings become more than just common coincidences.
1. Chapter 1

**[Chapter One]**

_"There are two regrets in life :_

_**You get what you don't want. **_

_**Or you don't get what you want.**_

_One does not discover new lands_

_without consenting to lose sight of_

_the shore for a very long time."_

* * *

_Tap tap tap_

"Sir…" Sam looked into the window of the parked car that resided in front of him. It had been a long night, or at least to him, it had felt like an eternity. His hand automatically reached to his holster on his hip, resting in its familiar position against his weapon. He had never used it and honestly he knew in the back of his mind that he never would. There was just something that was reassuring about knowing it was there. Almost like touching it pressed him to move forward, to do his job the way he was supposed to. "Sir, please step out of the car. I know you can hear me."

Sam suddenly relaxed as the man advanced to do as he was told. He hadn't realized that he had been so tense, completely holding his breath. He didn't trust people and he always second guessed them, never knowing what they were going to do next or how they would respond. As he had suspected, it was another drunk driver. It was the third one he had busted that night, but at least no one was hurt he thought.

"I'm gonna have to take you in to the station. Do you have someone that you could call to come and remove your vehicle? I normally don't offer this, but this road is very congested and your car is in a non safe zone. If you can't get anyone out here soon, I'm going to have to have it towed." Sam watched as the man opposite of him fumbled around in his car for a cell phone which in turn prompted him to check his own. Four missed calls and a text. "Shit." He mumbled as he ran his fingers through his hair. _Where are you? – Mercedes. _He once again had lost track of time, taking on overtime without thinking. "Hurry it up." He ordered as his reason for being late finished making a slurred phone call to God knows who. Sam finished cuffing and moving the man to the backseat of his cop car before throwing his own self into the front seat to speed away.

"How…old are you?" blurted the now sobering passenger in the backseat. Sam looked in his rearview mirror, pursing his lips into a disappointed and annoyed expression. That question had gotten fairly old very quickly.

"I'm 26." Sam mumbled, looking back to the road not really interested in continuing the conversation. Passengers often attempted to make conversation with him, undoubtedly to brown nose him and maybe talk themselves out of a severe punishment. Most days Sam would humor them, be nice to them, and show off his usual calm nature and sense of humor. Tonight he was just not in the mood.

"Well ya look TWELVE!" The man shot back at him, laughing a little at his own comment and then slouching back in his seat and staring out the window. Sam parted his lips as if to respond, but shut them quickly after not really caring to continue the conversation with this person who obviously was not in their right mind. After all, he probably wouldn't remember it in the morning anyway. "How long have you been doin' this? The whole bustin' criminals and savin' lives gig?" Sam cringed. This guy was really not helping himself and honestly was about to push him to his limit. He was not in the mood to deal with total idiots at the moment and his questions were as pointless as tits on a bull.

"Not very long since I'm twelve." Sam made eye contact with the other male in his mirror, raising his eyebrow as he repeated the question again.

"How long have you been a cop?" Sam gritted his teeth, trying to keep calm, knowing that letting this idiot get him worked up was not going to change the reality of the situation. He instead decided to humor the inquisitive individual and answer the question.

"Just 3 years now. I decided after high school to go in a different direction that I had originally planned for myself and this is where I ended up, so." Sam definitely was not intending to go any deeper with the random stranger that resided in the back of the car. It was hard for him to really open up to anyone to begin with, let alone a drunken interrogator on his way to jail.

"Why?" Sam was getting frustrated. Why did this guy care so much about his back story? Couldn't he just shut up and endure the ride to his demise in silence? "Why did you change your plans? Why'd you become a cop? You don't really seem the type."

"Why'd you drink and drive in a city with the highest number of policemen and zoom right past my car?" Sam quipped in return, receiving a small chuckle in response.

"Touché, sir. Touché." Sam gripped his steering wheel tighter and glanced sideways to his phone laying in the passenger's seat beside him and sighed.

"Do you mind not asking me anymore questions? I don't see the relevance in you having to know everything about my life at the moment. I'm just kind of having a difficult night and unfortunately when I get off, I'm not going to have a very forgiving evening with the wife either." Sam rubbed his face trying to shake off his feeling of woe and exhaustion. He almost felt bad for acting like such a prick, but he never quite made it to feeling too awful.

"The only true wisdom in life is in knowing you know nothing." Sam looked in the mirror again, this time with a look of confusion, not expecting a response like the one he had just heard. "Socrates, man. Look it up."

After happily dropping his burden off at the station, Sam quickly turned in the required paperwork and clocked out for the night before racing to his car for his next stop. He wasn't looking forward to the scolding he was about to receive, but he was looking forward to seeing Mercedes. Even when she was upset with him, she always managed to make him feel better. He rushed to his destination, occasionally darting his eyes to his speedometer, trying not to speed in the zones he knew were being watched, the perks of his current career. He pulled his car into a parking space in front of a club and stepped out of his car before locking it and jogging to the entrance. He placed his hands on the handle, pulling at it forcefully finding it to be locked. He looked down at his watch and sighed heavily. Closed.

"You completely missed it." He turned on his heels to see his wife standing behind him, her arms crossed against her chest and that look on her face that he hated to see. He had unfortunately seen it way too much lately. Sam looked at Mercedes, his face plastered with remorse as he approached her, scratching the back of his neck. He began to apologize, but she wasn't done talking. "I know. You were working. You know, it's fine, forget about it. I know you're busy and you always feel the need to over achieve and that's great. But, Sam, I'm beggin' you please…don't do this to me again." Mercedes looked up at Sam, trying to soften her approach because of her weakness to his way too effective puppy dog eyes.

"Cedes…I feel…I feel awful. I swear I didn't even realize what time it was. I caught this drunk driver and I don't know, I didn't feel my phone and-" He stopped himself knowing all of this wasn't really going to make the situation any better. "How did it go?" He asked instead, knowing it was what he should have asked to begin with.

"It went really well. Everyone loved the show and a lot of people came. I promise you I really think that buying that club was a good decision, Sam. We'll get our money back in no time, I promise." Sam reached out to rub her arms as he smirked a little thinking about maybe having success in their bold move. They had forked out all of their savings and more for this and it wasn't something that he had been completely comfortable with, but Mercedes seemed confident in their investment and if anyone could bring in a crowd, she could. He had decided to trust his wife's judgment and support her dreams even if it meant he would have to bust his ass at work.

He leaned down, placing a soft kiss on Mercedes' forehead before wrapping his arms around her in a much needed embrace. "Come on baby, let's go home."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

* * *

Sam rolled over in bed. Gosh this was not a night of amazing sleep that was for sure. He looked over at the clock. 5:04 a.m. He had woken up to this exact time now for three nights in a row. He found it to be a strange coincidence, but he wasn't going to linger on it. It seemed pointless. He made the effort to scratch at his chin, his scruff growing back in just as fast as he had shaved it off. If Mercedes didn't mind it, he probably would just grow it out. It stops itching after a certain amount of time, but she had made a few comments in the past about how much it tickled her when they were being intimate. That was enough reason for him to keep it gone. He couldn't help that he was whipped.

He rolled over in bed to watch as Mercedes slept, her chest rising up and down with her hand up on her pillow near her face. God, she was so beautiful. She didn't need to get all dressed up with makeup and accessories. She was perfect just like this, all natural and just as breathtaking as the scenery in Avatar. He reached over to gently stroke her cheek, careful trying not to wake her up. She tended to sleep like a rock, so he wasn't overly concerned. He had once gotten up to take a leak, but didn't notice the misplaced shoe that was near the bed in his attempt to be very quiet. He had stumbled, fallen, and taken then drapery over the bedside window down with him. Mercedes had just rolled over and began to slightly snore. He wasn't cautious with noise after that.

He scooted closer to her, wrapped his arm around her waist, and gently stoked her side with his fingertips. She moved a little then relaxed as he laid his head closer to hers, taking in her scent. He almost wanted her to wake up, just to see her look at him or hear her voice. He felt like he hadn't really seen her much lately, and that was probably because he hadn't. All he had done was work lately and he could tell it was starting to really get to her. He couldn't blame her though. It was getting to him as well. He missed all of the time that they used to spend together, laughing and snuggling up in front of the tv for movie night. There hadn't been many of those in the past few months. When he was home, she was usually either practicing for a performance, or at the club making sure things were running smoothly. He knew things couldn't always be perfect and that this was just a small rough patch that they were going through, but he still couldn't help but think about how spending more time together would relieve his stress in no time.

Sam jumped and almost yelped when he heard a loud noise suddenly make itself known. He quickly turned to snatch his phone from the bedside table when it began to buzz in long loud patterns. He looked at the caller id and rose from the bed, proceeding to take the call in the living room.

"Uh, hello?" He whispered, then cleared his throat to speak up not really knowing why he had gone all the way to another room just to whisper.

"Sam? Hey dude, it's me. I'm sorry for the timing, I just came in for my shift and honestly didn't want to wait to give you a call. Are you…okay?" Sam relaxed when he realized the familiar voice. It was his buddy and old time friend, now turned co worker, Puck. He had noticed the number calling him was from the station and it had worried him getting a call from work at such a crazy hour. He was having to get used to having Puck around again especially as a cop, seeing as how in high school, Noah Puckerman was not known for doing the right things pretty much ever. It had taken him 7 years to get his degree and get certified to do the job, but honestly Sam had to admit that he was damn good at it. After all, he knew most of the criminal secrets.

"I…yeah? I'm fine? Why do you ask?" Sam was confused and honestly just really wanted to go back to bed. He was emotionally and physically exhausted and being in his comfy bed next to his wife was where he wanted to be at this moment in time. Sam scratched his head, wondering if his phone had dropped the call after waiting several moments for a response from his friend.

"Well, I came in and Lenny called me in to ask me what was up with you last night. He said you came in and dropped off some strange paperwork for a DUI with the name Ian Charles Ucheli?" Sam cocked his eyebrow, confused about the question. He didn't think that he had acted strange at all last night. He had just done the usual procedures.

"Uh, I don't know about acting strange, but yeah, I busted a DUI last night. I dropped him off with the paperwork and shot out of there. I had to meet Mercedes and I was already a few hours late so I might've been a little rushed, but I didn't think I acted much different than normal." Sam leaned down against the couch, not bothering to sit down. He knew if he did, he probably wouldn't be able to get back up.

"Dude…are you sure you're okay? Maybe you should take more than just a day off, get some sleep." Sam was starting to get frustrated now. What was the big deal?

"What are you talking about, Puck? I'm fine…" He rose back to his feet again, all of a sudden feeling more awake.

"Sam, you didn't bring anyone in here last night. And all of the info that you have written down here for this Uncheli guy is phony, dude. This information doesn't exist. There is no person listed anywhere that we can find under the name Ian Charles Ucheli…" Sam's heart sunk. Confusion didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling at this moment. He knew that they had to be playing some sort of joke on him. He knew what happened last night and he knew he busted this guy. He saw his license and he talked to him clear as day. He definitely was not in the mood for a practical joke at the moment.

"Very funny, Puckerman. You can tell Lenny that you all can go suck a big fish. I'm tired, I'm annoyed, and I'm not dealing with this on my day off. Bye." He hung up before Puck could continue whatever he was trying to pull and he threw his phone on to the coffee table. He didn't even want to bother taking the phone back to the bedroom with him. On his way down the hall, he glanced at the various photos they had hanging on the wall, shadows of cars and people from the streets of New York City moving on the wall in a layer on top of them. He allowed himself to form a smile as he revisited those moments from his past, pictures of his family from back home and His wedding day. Mercedes hadn't changed a bit, but he could see the changes in himself. He knew that he had let himself get too stressed out the past few years, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to shake the funk he was in.

He walked to the doorway of his bedroom, watching as Mercedes was still fast asleep, a look of total peace on her flawless face. He looked to the window, watching the lights move on the shadows from the marquees on the curtains. They were reaching a point in their marriage where Mercedes was ready to have kids, to start a family. A part of Sam did too. He had always been a family man. But, something was holding him back. He was afraid they weren't ready, especially financially and the thought of trying to take care of another human being in the position they were in seemed terrifying.

He slumped over to his side of the bed and crawled back in, welcoming the warmness of the sheets just as he had left them. As he closed his eyes to drift off to sleep, the scene from the previous night played over and over again in his head. He could see the license as if he was holding it again right in front of his face. Ian Charles Ucheli…

Sam's eyes shot back open and a lump began to form in his throat as he whispered his thoughts out loud to himself. "I C U.". Maybe it was just a coincidence. Maybe it wasn't. Maybe once again, he should just not think so much.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

* * *

"Why in the world are you switching to Criminal Justice?" Sam looked over to his dad, hearing his question, and sighed not sure exactly how to answer it, or at least, how to answer it in the right way.

"I…well…I'm sorry dad, I know this was kind of out of nowhere. I just…feel like it's what I'm supposed to do."Sam took a step back when his dad lifted his arm. He had only done it to grab his hair in frustration, but Sam had never seen his dad this angry with him before. He didn't quite know how to react.

"No, Sam, What you're supposed to do is go to school for the thing that I paid for you to go to school for." Sam looked to the ground, not really knowing what else to say. "You are going to stay in school, study sports management, and continue to play ball, you hear me?" Sam was starting to get very frustrated. This was a feeling that he wasn't fully accustomed to…he normally just went with the flow and took things as they came. Right now, his blood was boiling.

"Sorry that I've disappointed you." Sam turned to leave the room, not sure how much more of this bullshit he could take. He hadn't expected his dad to be in love with the idea, but he definitely didn't expect this.

"You're not goin' anywhere, little boy." Sam felt his dad grab his arm, forcing him to stay in place. "You listen to me. I had to beg Ohio State to even have you on as a bench warmer. I couldn't even get them to pay for some of your school, but they at least took you on. Your mother and I have spent money that we don't have. Do not embarrass me, Sam."

Sam was beyond frustrated. He was furious. If he had been just a little more of a badass, he would have punched his dad right there. He yanked his arm away from his father's grip and looked him in the eye with a new found confidence. He wasn't going to give in this time. He was always giving in to what everyone wanted him to do. The only person who encouraged him to follow his heart, was the one who actually had his heart. Mercedes was his rock right now and the night before she had begged him to finally tell his father of his change in future plans. He had started out this conversation doing it for her, but now he was going to finish it for him.

"I'm sorry if this embarrasses you and I'm grateful for all of your help so far. I'm not asking you to pay for the rest of my college, you don't have to. I applied for some scholarships and some loans for the rest of my schooling and I was approved. I quit the football team, Dad, and I'm done with sports management. I'm going to be a cop and I'm moving to New York City…with Mercedes."

* * *

"Sam, honey, time to wake up." Sam's eyes fluttered open to view his lovely wife holding breakfast on a tray in front of him. He smiled and forced himself to sit up, rubbing his eyes to adjust to the scene.

"W-what? What's this for?" He grabbed the tray from her, viewing his options and licking his lips. He felt like he hadn't eaten in weeks. Mercedes smiled and kissed his head before sitting in the bed next to him and covering herself up.

"You've been workin' hard, babe. I thought you deserved it. Hey now! Some of that's mine!" She laughed and grabbed a muffin from the tray and kissed him on the cheek playfully. "Did you sleep okay last night? I thought I heard you get up and down a few times." Sam pulled an apple away from his lips, not wanting to take a bite just yet after that question.

"I-yeah. I mean Puck called me from the station. Had a question about a guy I brought in last night for a DUI." Sam's eyes began to glaze over, his mind now wandering back to that phone call, almost forgetting the situation and partially wondering now if the phone call had even happened.

"That late at night? What in the world was his question that it was that important?" Sam was regretting even mentioning it now, not wanting to go into the details about it. He just wanted to relax today and at least eat his breakfast without thinking about work.

"Idk, I think he was just being an asshole and playing a joke on me. Thanks for breakfast baby, this looks really good. I can't wait to eat it." He glanced over towards her, flashing her his patented half smirk before picking up the apple again.

"I get it, I get it, you wanna eat, not talk." She smiled and bit into her muffin, flipping on the television to watch the morning news. Sam looked up at the TV screen, watching the images of things happening in NYC, always interesting affairs. He was glad that he finally had a day off. He would have fallen over dead if he didn't get some time to relax, he had decided. He looked down for a minute, then glanced back up at the TV just in time to catch a glance of a very familiar looking person. One he had just seen several hours ago. His heart dropped.

"What in the…" He moved his tray quickly to the side table, crawling towards the end of the bed to get a better look to make sure what he was seeing was real. "Oh shit."

"Sam, what? What is it?" Mercedes looked from her husband to the TV screen back and forth, confused at what the big deal was. "You're acting all kinds of crazy."

Sam didn't answer right away, he couldn't. His eyes focused on the screen, blinking several times for good measure. It was definitely him. The guy he brought in to the station last night. I.C.U.

"Do you know that guy?" Mercedes asked, piecing together who Sam must've been gawking at. "He's really well known around town. He owned the club before we bought it, remember?" Sam's glance shot back towards Mercedes, trying to take in what she just said. It couldn't be true. He didn't remember this guy at all. Was he really that disconnected from everything that he was starting to lose his mind? He crawled back up the bed, getting closer to her before the conversation moved any further.

"I met this guy? When we bought the club?" Mercedes was looking at him like she usually did when he wasn't making any sense or when he was dancing around the house brushing his teeth and slathering on deodorant.

"Well, not technically, I guess. You talked to him on the phone. Does that count?" Sam looked away from her, deep in thought and completely confused. "Sam, what is your deal? Did he do something wrong?" Sam looked over at Mercedes again, totally understanding why she was weirded out right now. He must've seemed like he was insane.

"Well…he was who I took in for a DUI last night. I looked at his license, said his name was Ian Charles Ucheli. But, I don't ever remember hearing that name before." Sam's brain was starting to hurt. He had so many questions and none of them seemed to match up.

"Because his name isn't Ian Charles Ukulele or whatever. It's Doug McAllister. He owns a lot of buildings around here. He's a famous business man, works on Wall Street. You busted him for a DUI?" Sam got up and rushed out of the room, looking for wherever he had laid his bag down last night. He needed some answers quickly. He glanced behind him, seeing Mercedes leave the room shortly after him, no doubt trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

Papers were flying around left and right as he desperately searched for any evidence at all of his arrest the night before. Any kind of clarification would have been amazing. Nothing.

"Sam what in the world-" Mercedes trailed off when Sam shot back up again, going to grab his phone that he had forgotten that he'd thrown down on the kitchen table last night to avoid any outer world contact. He had several missed called from Puck, one text from him that read "Dude im not jking pick up ur phone" and another text…from a number he didn't recognize. He scratched the back of his head as he read the number.

_504-0000. _Was that even a real number? He was hesitant to open it, not really sure what to expect. He bit his lip as he tapped on the message to reveal its contents.

"Watch her and I will watch u

-I C U"

Sam almost dropped his phone, really starting to worry now. He looked over at Mercedes, trying to keep his cool. What was going on? Who was this person and what did that text even mean? He looked around him, all of a sudden an eerie feeling filling up this room as he started to feel like there were eyes on him, watching his every move. He once again sat his phone down on the table, and smirking at Mercedes before heading for the bathroom.

Mercedes watched her husband scamper off, a look of worry and confusion spread across her face. He needed rest more than she thought. He was starting to act crazy. She looked over at his phone, hesitant to spy, but she grabbed it and unlocked the screen. She didn't want to snoop, but he obviously wasn't telling her anything and she was starting to get suspicious of his actions. She opened up his inbox, but it was empty except for some old texts from her and one from Puck from last night. What was going on with him?


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

* * *

At 2:30 PM, Mercedes went for her routine walk to the corner record shop. She loved going to see all of the new stuff they would have in and listen to a few records. She never bought any, but the owner liked her so much that he would let her stay and listen to a few spins.

It was something that she did almost every day, without fail. It had felt like any other day. The weather was fine and the city was buzzing with tourists and people bustling back to work from their lunch break. The only thing this time was that Mercedes was worried about Sam. Normally he was a very strong person. He didn't let a whole lot get to him and his laid back and take everything as it comes personality hadn't allowed him to show any sign of weakness in the past few years. This made it very difficult for Mercedes to really know what to do or how to handle the strange turn of events. She had never had to before.

She stopped at the doorway to their apartment building. She sighed and looked all the way up to their window. She started to get this feeling in the pit of her stomach, something that was making her uncomfortable. She brushed it off and began to ascend the stairs, making her way up to their apartment door and she opened it.

"Sam?" She looked around the living room, not seeing her husband in his normal position on the sofa watching some nerdy anime show in his underwear like he did on his days off. She walked around the apartment, checking each room until she reached the bedroom, twisting the door knob and losing her breath at the sight in front of her.

"SAM? Oh God, Sam, baby…BABY?" She dropped to her knees seeing him laying on the floor, his eyes closed loosely, not very responsive to her efforts. She held his face, trying to get him to open his eyes or make any kind of sound to let her know he was okay. She fetched her phone from her pocket immediately and began to shakily dial 911. She jumped when Sam suddenly grabbed her arm and groaned as he sat up. "Sam? Oh my God." She grabbed him and held him as she began to cry against his shoulder, relieved but still scared at the same time. "What happened?"

Sam rubbed his head and began to breathe at a more steady pace as he looked at Mercedes, feeling really terrible that he had scared her so bad. He had just felt so tired…he had barely gotten any sleep the past few nights and he assumed it was catching up to him.

"Cedes, I'm so sorry. I'm fine. I promise…I guess I just was really tired. I haven't slept very well lately and I just passed out." Sam knew Mercedes wasn't really gonna buy this and he guessed if it were her, he wouldn't either. He started to get up and she pushed him down a little not letting him advance.

"Sam, I'm taking you to the hospital." He knew it was going to be hard to talk her out of this. When Mercedes made her mind up about something, she usually stuck to it. At this point, it would take an act of God to talk her out of this.

"Baby, I am fine. When you don't sleep but maybe 4 hours equivalent in a week, you tend to pass out." Mercedes finally let Sam stand up. He grabbed his head feeling a little dizzy as he balanced himself against the bed post closest to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head on his chest feeling him breathe as if she was afraid that it would be the last time. He glanced over at the clock.

**5:04 PM.**

All of a sudden he got a flashback to the mysterious number that had texted him last night. 504-0000. 504. What was 504? He mentally noted that he had been waking up every night at 5:04 AM and now all of this? He was getting a little irritated at hearing his own voice telling him that everything was a coincidence and that he was just thinking too much.

"Fine, I won't force you to go to the hospital. But please promise me that if you start feeling weird again that you will go. For me." Mercedes looked up at Sam, her big brown eyes lined with tears from before, trying to calm herself down from the scare. Sam relaxed, moving his hand to her cheek and caressing it gently, wiping away all stray tears that happened to roll down her soft skin.

"I promise." He smirked at her, trying to make her relax and crack a smile. He normally was good at provoking a quick mood change in his wife, but this time it was proving to be a little more tough than usual. He placed a quick kiss on her forehead than stepped away from her, with his back facing her direction. He smiled to himself before slowly turning around and biting his lip. "Do you know what it's time for…" He grinned showing off his long lost dimples, almost causing Mercedes to smile. She usually couldn't resist those.

"Sam…no!" Mercedes began to smile, piecing together what he was proposing. She watched as Sam backed up a little, nodding and biting his lip.

"I think so, Mercy….I think it's time for….WHITE CHOCOLATE!" Sam pulled off his shirt and turned around to do a booty pop, causing Mercedes to let out a welcomed burst of laughter clutching at her stomach, as if it hurt to finally laugh.

"You are CRAZY!" She choked out, grinning from ear to ear as he turned around to smile at her. She finally relaxed and reached out to grab his hips and pull him a little closer to her. They had both been so stressed with everything that was going on lately, she realized that she probably hadn't been the best wife she could be for Sam lately. She knew he was working hard to give her what she wanted, but she hadn't realized how much the stress had really been getting to him until now. Her eyes glanced all over his body. She loved his body…it was perfect. Over the years he had gone from a delicious 6 pack, to a dead sexy 8 pack. It was just right, not too much. He still held a slim frame while retaining arms, abs, and a chest to die for. She looked up into his gentle green eyes. They were sparkling in the dim light of their bedroom, his hair a little messy and partially hanging over them before she moved her hand to brush it to the side. He was gorgeous.

"Sam…I know you're really stressed…" She whispered. He started to respond, but Mercedes wasn't done yet. She lifted her finger to his full soft lips and pressed it gently against them, making him stop. "Let me help you." Sam raised an eyebrow, his heartbeat now beating much faster than previously. Mercedes smiled an evil grin, taking in his reaction with pride. She grabbed his arms, pushing him down on the bed so that he was sitting on the edge, nothing but his underwear on that she had noted was framing his package really well, better and better by the second, she noted.

"Just relax…" She cooed, leaning down to gently kiss his lips, soft and slow, taking in every taste of him that she could before moving on. She reached back, gripping his already disheveled hair and began to tug on it, pulling it back to leave his neck exposed and vulnerable, ready for attack. She swooped in, pushing her lips against the side of his throat, kissing on it and sucking lightly, feeling him breathe harder and harder. She moved her free hand to his thigh, squeezing it and moving her fingers up higher towards the prize, avoiding touching him where he wanted her to just yet. She was being such a tease.

Her lips began to make a path down his body, touching on his chiseled pecks and defined abs, making sure she kissed each one individually before making her way down his carefully groomed happy trail. She looked up at her man, a pleased and ready expression on his face. His lips were parted as he fought to control his breathing, occasionally swiping his tongue across his lips to keep them moist. She became painfully excited as he began to open his legs, revealing even more than before his fully erect member that was throbbing under his snug boxer briefs, ready to be attended to.

"Mmm…" She moaned, leaning in to nuzzle her nose against it, making Sam tense up a little and grab on to her hair, almost as if even the slightest contact made him tremble. Making him feel this way, thrilled her like nothing else could. Every small noise that he made and every shallow breath that he exhaled, made pleasure shoot all through her body like lightening. She was definitely ready for more. "Lift up…" she whispered.

Sam lifted his hips, making his abs even more defined, as noted by Mercedes. That was never going to get old. She grabbed the waistband of his underwear, pulling them down his thighs and off in one swift motion. After tossing them to the side, she ran her hands up his thighs and finished at his now exposed cock. She leaned in and pressed her lips against the head, humming against it and rubbing her tongue right on his favorite spot before taking it into her mouth. When she was younger, she hated doing this with her past lovers. It had always made her feel dirty. But, with Sam, it was an act of love. It was something that she legitimately enjoyed to do and right now, it was feeling like her favorite activity.

As she began to really work her mouth on him, Sam bucked his hips in a steady rhythm with her movements as he fell back on to the bed, no longer able to hold himself up from all the pleasure. He could hear himself moaning, barely able to even recognize it was himself. He had never really made noise like that before, but this was feeling so good. He could tell Mercedes was enjoying his sounds, speeding up every time he let one slip. He tugged on her hair a little with one hand and gripped his own with the other. He loved having his hair pulled…what could he say? He was a little naughty. His back arched as she got him closer and closer to his climax, breathing long and deep shallow breaths, and clenching his toes from all of the pleasure surging through his body. He let out a long deep moan before biting his lip and screaming Mercedes' name right before losing all control and letting himself release his cum into her mouth.

His eyes rolled back in his head, relaxation hitting him like a ton of bricks as he dropped his arms on either side of him, his lungs desperately panting for air. He felt the bed move as Mercedes crawled up next to him, a huge smile planted on her face seeing how good she had made him feel. She reached over to caress his cheek now, placing small kisses all over his face and ending on his perfect lips. The thought crossed his mind that she tasted like him, but at this point he didn't really care. He was feeling great. He couldn't help but drift off to sleep and as he did, he said a little prayer. A prayer for a good night's rest.


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry guys, I know it's been a long wait for the next chapter.

This one is a little longer, so I hope you enjoy :-)

Reviews are much appreciated!

* * *

**Chapter Five**

* * *

**5:04 a.m.**

Sam's eyes rested on the clock directly across from him on his side table. He was starting to really become frustrated at these coincidences. Something was different about this moment though. Something about the way he was feeling made him squirm around in bed, slightly uncomfortable. He was tired, but it was like his body was telling him there was something that he was supposed to do or yet…something he didn't do?

He could hear some sirens off in the distance but as the minutes passed, they began to sound closer and closer. He was accustomed to hearing sirens. For one, it was in his career to flip one on; and two, they lived in New York City. Something was always going on and he wondered how he hadn't adapted to blocking out the noise as well as his heavy sleeping wife. Lately, he felt as if every little thing had woken him up. Actually…If he really thought about it…lately, he felt like he was just going slightly insane. He wasn't sure what was going on with him…but, people were starting to notice.

Sam desperately tried to go back to sleep, knowing that he was going to have to be at work in just a few hours, but he couldn't seem to shut off his brain. He felt like he had so many questions that he wanted to have answered, no, _needed_ to have answered. He glanced over at Mercedes, discovering as every night, her gentle form moving up and down in her peaceful slumber, not making a peep. He reached around her to her bedside table, grabbing the remote to flip on the TV, trying to surf channels for something that might bore him enough to help him fall back asleep. The TV turned on, lighting up their bedroom a few shades lighter than the lights coming in from outside had been. His eyes fell on the objects of their room, mentally noting where everything was, down to every pair of randomly tossed aside tennis shoes.

Suddenly something on TV caught his attention. He had somehow in his sleepy drunkenness, landed on the news and the same images that he had seen a day prior were playing on the screen, except this time, with a different caption. His eyes grew wide as he turned the volume up, listening to what the woman was saying.

"Doug McAllister, one of the city's very well-known and respected businessmen, was just found dead in his car around 5:00 this morning, heavy traces of alcohol in his system, a suspected drunk driving incident. Police are further investigating the scene and plans of his many businesses and franchises are unknown as of right now." Sam flipped off the TV, his heart racing in his chest. He was starting to feel like all of these things couldn't just be coincidences anymore, and if they were, he was scared shitless anyway.

He began to dig in the side drawer of his side table, fishing out a pencil and a small note pad of paper that he obviously hadn't touched in awhile, judging by the poof of dust that came along with it as he retrieved it from it's long-time resting place. He began to feverishly scribble down notes, anything that came to mind that had been happening the past few days. He wrote down ICU, the strange text, the DUI, 5:04, and…he began to think about his passing out episode. He hadn't really remembered many details from right before, or what had even happened. Somehow, he felt like if he could remember what had caused him to faint, maybe he could piece together what was going on with him.

Suddenly he heard a buzz from his phone as it jumped on the table, causing his heart to skip a beat…or two. Who in the world would be texting him right now? He slowly reached for it, taking it timidly in his hand before unlocking the screen to view the alert. His heart beat began to speed up, realizing his new text message was from the one number he had wished he'd never see again. As he fought with his inner conscience to open it, his curiosity won, and he tapped on the notification to bring it up into view.

"U were 2 late"

So few words, so many emotions.

He slowly let his phone drop to the floor, unable to grip it anymore. Was he supposed to have saved this man? His temple was starting to pound, as he rubbed it in confusion, trying to understand what was going on. After a few minutes he shot up, opting to take a shower to try and calm himself down before going into work a bit early. This was going to be a long day…a long week.

* * *

"Listen guys, I'm sorry. You know I'm gunna do everything that I can to try and keep up afloat, but now that McAllister is gone, I don't know if the new owners are gunna cut us the kinda deals that he was on our rent. He let us get away with a lot of stuff." Mercedes looked around the room at all of her employees, turned friends. She had really grown to love them since she had started up this club and they had helped her so much in trying to get it the recognition and success it needed to make it. The news of Doug McAllister's death was a big punch to their hopes, seeing as how he was letting them rent this place out at almost half what the space was worth. Normally Mercedes was good at sugar coating things, and putting on a strong front that she didn't care, whatever happened, they were gonna be fine. But, this was different. She had a bad feeling about what was to come. Nice businessmen like him were hard to find, especially in NYC.

She looked down at her phone, noting that it was almost 30 minutes past the time Sam had promised to be there. She couldn't say that she was surprised, he must've been held up at work. Again. However, after his recent spell the night before, she had been abnormally worried about him. She wanted him to see a doctor, but she knew how hopeless that attempt was going to be. Almost as hopeless as getting him where she needed him to be on time.

She looked up to the door to see him bustling in, a change of clothes under his arm to change into from his uniform. She couldn't help but smile. Even after all this time, seeing him made her beam like she was 16 again, seeing him for the first time. She was still every bit as much in love with him and 100 times more even, and every time she thought her feelings couldn't grow any stronger, she felt them swell a little more. Sam was definitely her soulmate and even in their most difficult times, all he had to do was walk through the door, and she knew everything was gonna be okay.

"I'm so sorry…" Sam walked up to his wife, a look of worry on his face. She greeted his reaction with a big smile, kissing the dimple on his chin.

"Sam, it's okay. Don't worry, you haven't really missed much. We haven't even opened yet." Sam relaxed into his natural side smirk, one that Mercedes knew she would never get tired of seeing.

"Well, okay. I promise I'll do better though, baby. I guess I'm gonna go change. Don't wanna freak people out tonight looking like I'm about to take someone in." Sam gestured towards the change of clothes under his arm before giving Mercedes a soft kiss on the lips, lingering there for a minute to enjoy the moment. Mercedes bit her lip as she watched him walk away. That kiss was good, but that cop uniform did a few things to her as well.

"Er- okay, everyone start cleaning up and get ready to open, okay? We're gunna make this a great night. Want people to wanna come back, right?" Mercedes watched as everyone scurried off, setting up chairs and tables and all of the sound equipment on the stage. She found herself lost in the music as she sat off by herself, looking over her music for the night. She had been writing a lot lately and she really had fallen in love with the thought of writing all of her own music. Even if people didn't enjoy it, it was definitely something that made her relax. She felt free.

She glanced up from her words, looking in front of her to one of her newest waitresses that she had hired. She had been cleaning off a table and she noticed she had been there for an extensive amount of time. She watched as she slowly wiped off the surface, over-scrubbing in one area. She also noticed that this girl's eyes definitely were not on the table. She followed her glance over to across the room where Sam was standing. He was wearing a pair of form fitting dark washed jeans that hugged him in all the right places. His favorite pair of black converse poking out below them that matched the tight black and white graphic v-neck t-shirt that hugged his upper body. He lifted his favorite black leather jacket up and over his arms, pulling it on him to complete his look before slipping his hands into his pockets. Other women looking at her man was not something that Mercedes wasn't accustomed to. After all, she knew what she had. He was delicious. But, he was also hers.

"I think that table is clean, Bethany, thank you." Mercedes smiled, watching her jump in surprise and nod faster than she'd ever seen anyone nod before scurrying off to a table much further away and out of view. She turned and looked down at the time and smirked before getting off of the stool and making her way to the back to change. It was her turn now. She bustled through her selection of show outfits, finally deciding on the prefect bombshell red dress. She looked great in pretty much any color, but Sam loved it when she wore red. As she slipped it on, she studied herself in the mirror, applying the perfect amount of ruby red lipstick, and stepping into her matching designer heels. She slipped her hands behind her hair, shaking out her long loose curls that fell over her shoulders and landed on her chest that was perfectly accentuated by her low cut dress. She could already picture in her head the look that she was gonna get from Sam. It was by far one of her favorite faces and she couldn't wait to see it.

Sam looked around the club, watching as everyone was cleaning and getting things set up. He didn't see Mercedes so he figured she had run off to get ready. He was happy that he had been able to make it here. He hadn't been able to the past few times. He missed watching her perform and he knew how much it meant to her to be there front row and center, cheering her on as her number one fan. But, there were still those thoughts lingering in the back of his mind, haunting him and poking at him, eating him alive even. He sat down at the bar, grabbing at his hair as he rested his forehead on his palm.

"You look like you could use a drink." Sam looked over as he heard the sudden voice appear. It was one he didn't recognize and when he looked over, the face didn't click either.

"Uh, ha. Yeah, maybe." He looked away, trying to shake her off. He wasn't really interested in a conversation right now, especially with a woman he didn't know. He was hoping she'd get the hint.

"Rough day?" He heard her take a seat beside him, making him feel almost angry. He hated when people tried to make conversation when they knew you obviously didn't want to talk. An experience he knew all too well lately.

"You could say that. But, if you don't mind, I don't really wanna discuss it." He looked over at the girl, putting on a smile trying to seem like a total asshole, as he was sure he was seeming to be.

The girl searched his face with her eyes. He noted that they were blue. The bluest eyes he had ever seen actually. They seemed to hold a lot of secrets, like she had something that she wanted to tell him, but couldn't. "That's fine. I didn't mean to be nosy. I was just here to drop off something for my sister. She works here. Over there, Bethany Jenkins." Sam looked to where the girl was pointing, but he honestly didn't really care. He didn't know Bethany, nor did he really know too many other people that Mercedes had hired since they had started this place up. He regrettably hadn't been able to be around much.

"That's cool." He halfway smirked at her, still trying to turn the conversation away so that he could avoid any further prodding. He glanced over at her, noting that she was still looking at him, almost as if she was trying to read what he was thinking. With the way things were going recently, he almost freaked himself out wondering if she could read what he was thinking.

"Well, I better go…I've got to go to work. But, uh, if you ever…want to, ya know, hangout…give me a call." He looked over as she slipped a card towards him. She obviously didn't know he was married. He watched her as she walked off. She was a beautiful woman. Tall, slim in figure, but with a nice shape. She had long soft dark hair and almost glowing light skin. But definitely not as hot as his wife, and a whole lot sluttier he mentally noted. He glanced down at her card noting that it had a tagline "_for a good time that will be sure to light up your night_" and he quickly pushed the card away. Prostitute. Figures. As he started to drift back into his thoughts again, his eyes shot back to the card, this time reading her name much closer. It read Candy at the top, but underneath there was a small line printed that he had missed before.

"_Eye Candy just for You_."

He didn't know if it were his dyslexia or if it was just a coincidence again, but the way the letters were capitalized, he read it as "I C U."

"Fuck." His heart began to race again, a feel of panic rushing over him like he had felt before, knowing that there was no way all of this was just some random happening. He shot back in to reality as the doors of the club were opened, people coming in and taking their seats for the show that was about to begin in only a few minutes. He fought to get himself together, grabbing the card and slipping it into his pocket before taking a seat at the front of the stage.

He ordered a drink when asked if he needed anything and gratefully received it when it was brought to him. He started to relax a little, happy to see that the club was beginning to fill up so well. He couldn't wait to see Mercedes bring the house down with her amazing talent, one that he was always anxious to experience. He suddenly jumped when he felt two strong hands on his shoulders, looking around and smiling in relief to see familiar faces. It was Puck who had brought along Quinn, as well as Finn and Rachel who had all come out to see the show.

"Oh my God, hey!" Sam stood up to greet everyone with hugs and handshakes, happy to see more than just Puck out of his old group of friends. It had felt like something was missing in his life not having them around and with everyone being so busy, he hadn't known when they'd all be able to get together again.

"Hey buddy, ya look good! Good to see ya!" Finn shook Sam's hand excitedly, his all familiar dopey grin spread across his face as he finished his greeting and pulled a chair back for Rachel as she pulled off her jacket to have a seat.

"Sam, this place is amazing." Quinn looked around and smiled, showing her genuine admiration before scooting up to the table as the last person to get situated.

"Thank you. Guys, it's so awesome to see you. You have no idea." All of a sudden, Sam seemed to forget everything that had been going on, caught up in this moment with his friends, a smile on his face that he couldn't seem to shake.

"It's really, really great to see you as well." Rachel beamed as she clasped her hands in front of her, no doubt flashed the big rock that resided on her finger. "Finn and I have been trying to find a night that we could make it out here and check this place out. We have heard wonderful things and I cannot wait to see Mercedes!" Sam smirked, noting that Rachel hadn't really changed a bit. But, it was something that he didn't mind at all.

As the lights began to fade down, they all turned to the stage, waiting for the show to begin. Sam bit his lip, a flutter forming in his heart as he watched the curtains slowly open, revealing the form of his drop dead fox of a wife, wearing a dress that instantly took his breath away. She turned around, the lights caught the sparkle of her heels and the glimmer of her make-up. She raised the microphone slowly to her lips, looking around the room with her eyebrow raised.

"Now…I don't know about ya'll…but tonight…I'm feelin' like it's time to get…on…YOUR FEET!" The curtains shot back as the band began to play, instantly causing a roar from the audience, Sam the first one to his feet. Mercedes really knew how to put on a show and bring the mood.

"Hey, hey heyyy…yeah!" Mercedes made her way across the stage, clapping her hands as she drifted into the music, almost becoming the song. "Ohh oh oh all of my life! People keep a tellin' me that…that climb to the top of my mountain, is gunna take me a life and a half, BUT, I never was one to give up! I never stop half in my traaaacks, SO, all of those people talkin' to me, they can just kiss my….." Mercedes brought her finger to her lips, causing a sea of laughter from the viewers.

Sam was smiling so big, he felt like his face was going to burst at any minute. Mercedes was a star. She could entertain a crowd better than anyone he had ever seen in his life and he had never been so proud to call anything his. All of his suffering and heartache that he had had to endure up until this point didn't even matter in comparison to how lucky he was to have Mercedes. She was not only a shining star up on that stage and obviously in the eyes of everyone around them, but she was his shining star.

As the show went on, Mercedes went back and forth through her comedy routines and her well written ballads, giving the audience a good variety of mood setters and experiences. Sam was so swallowed up in the show, that he barely realized how much time had went by, not wanting it to be over. He hadn't enjoyed himself this much in such a long time, he felt like it had gone by too fast. He shared a few drinks with his friends and they all commented on how amazing the show had been and soon, they began to mention that they needed to head out soon. He watched as they all rushed to Mercedes when she made her appearance out from the back and smiled as he waited his turn, but something off in the corner caught his eye. He looked over seeing a familiar face, swallowing hard when realizing who it was.

The woman from earlier was standing in the corner of the club all by herself. She looked much rougher than before, a shadow of something across her neck. He lost his breath when he realized that it looked like blood. He grasped at his chest, holding onto it as his heart began to race when her lips formed the words "Help me."

Sam blinked hard, sweat slowly beginning to roll down his face as he began to become dizzy, hardly able to stand. He looked over again, the woman now gone from sight. This was enough to send him over the edge, feeling a coldness start to creep over his body, he became weak. Sam closed his eyes, feeling himself start to fall to the ground hearing faint calls from Mercedes and his friends asking if he was okay as he drifted into darkness.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

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Some people believe that somehow, we have all been placed here by chance. That one by one, we randomly have made our way on to this Earth that has formed itself from random particles that have poofed themselves into existence.

Some believe there is a God that has made us in his own image, living in a world of sin and that somehow, some way, we choose to either love him or deny him.

And some people just don't know what the hell is going on.

No matter what path we choose, there is always a feeling of uncertainty, and things that we cannot explain. What is real and what is not real? Is it just in our head and if it is…doesn't that just make it even more real to us?

* * *

"Help me…"

Those two words, although simple and direct in meaning, were complicating and clouding the exhausted brain of Sam Evans, who was blinking his eyes now only to find himself blurrily viewing the ceiling of a room he didn't recognize. He soon realized he was no longer at the club or at his apartment. Instead, the familiar smell of sterilization and the audible beeping sounds clued him into comprehending that he was in a hospital.

An overwhelming sense of embarrassment washed over him as he realized that he had fainted yet again, except this time in front of everyone. He couldn't blame Mercedes for being this concerned, yet he knew he was physically fine. As he finally forced himself to sit up in bed, he looked around the room surprised to find that he was alone. Where was everyone? He at least expected Mercedes to be there when he woke up. He rubbed his temple in frustration trying to piece together everything that was happening to him and he was finding that it was still just as hard to make sense of things as it had been before.

For a moment everything seemed to fall completely silent, leaving Sam only to his thoughts as they pounded deep in his mind. He let himself fall back, his head hitting the pillow in a quick _thump_. The sound almost jumpstarted his thought process, as if it charged him to make his next move. He glanced over to the side table, something that he had yet to do, and looking at the drawer prompted him to slide it open, viewing the contents that resided inside. His eyes grew wide as he glanced upon the Bible within, wondering if perhaps reading it would give him some much desired answers. He reached for it, pulling it out and glancing over the cover, almost too nervous to even know where to begin. He closed his eyes, throwing in a quick prayer to himself before cracking it open, his deep green eyes darting over the words like a starving dog scarfing a meal.

"Ah, I see that you're awake." Sam dropped the Bible in shock and looked up to see a nurse enter in, carrying with her a chart and a few other items under her arm. She chuckled a little then sat her things down on the side table. "Didn't mean to scare ya. My name is Ida." Sam looked at the woman closer. She looked a little familiar, but not really. She was dark skinned and a little heavy set, but she had a very sweet disposition. He felt comfortable around her already, like he had known her for a very long time. "Doing a little reading?" Sam looked down at the Bible, almost forgetting that he had still been holding it.

"Oh. Yeah…was just curious about something." He halfway smirked, but let it quickly fade. He was starting to feel a little uncomfortable once again, a feeling that he had been all too familiar with lately when people decided to prod him for information.

"Lay it on me." Sam looked to the nurse quickly as she made her statement. She wasn't even looking in his direction as she pushed some buttons on his IV machine. Why was everyone so nosey? "Go ahead. I read that book every night of my life." She turned to look at him with an almost daring expression on her face, ready for whatever question he had on his mind. Sam looked away not really wanting to discuss what was on his mind, but decided to humor her.

"Discernment. I was wondering about discernment." He glanced over at her, noting her amused expression and wondered what she was going to say next.

"You have a gift of discernment." She muttered, causing Sam to cock his eyebrow in a confused manner.

"What do you mean?" He asked, feeling sweat start to form on his brow. He knew what she was saying and what she was talking about. It was the fact that she sounded as if she knew him, as if she knew what was going on that was starting to freak him out.

"I think you know, Sam. You can judge when people are about to die, can't you?" Sam's heart was racing. He felt like it was going to burst out of his chest at any minute. Who was this woman? And why did she know all of this? He slowly started to get up, wanting to leave the room as he became more and more frightened at the circumstances. He literally wanted to be anywhere but here. He wanted to find Mercedes, he wanted to tell her everything and hope that she didn't think he was crazy. Maybe he was. "Hey now, where do you think you're goin'?" She asked as Sam looked from her face to the door that was just slightly ajar. He wanted to dart for it, to make his way out of it as quickly as possible, but he noticed that it began to move and then close on its own.

"W…where am I?" He asked as his voice began to shake, not really knowing what to do with all of these new found experiences. This couldn't be happening.

"You're dreaming." Sam blinked his eyes, feeling like everything around him was spinning and his brain was swimming around in his head. "Sam, you're dreaming, wake up." He heard Mercedes' voice fill his ears as his eyes finally fluttered open to view her face and a sense of relief washed over him completely.

"Mercedes. Shit…I'm so sorry…" Mercedes reached down to gently caress her husband's cheek, a look of concern in her eyes.

"Baby…what are you sorry for?" She asked calmly. Her eyes were searching his face trying to reassure him that everything was alright and that she wasn't going anywhere.

"For…well, for passing out like that." He looked at her with a look of guilt spread across his face, grabbing at her hand and holding it tight with both of his. He noted that it was taking an extremely long time for her to reply. She looked somewhat confused, an expression that he was getting used to lately.

"Sam. Baby, you didn't pass out on me? You've been sleeping all night." Sam looked at her, his face now twisted in horror. What in the hell was going on with him? He quickly jumped out of bed, a cold sweat forming on his forehead as thoughts raced through his mind. He wasn't even sure who he was any more or what was even real. "Sam what is going on with you?" Sam turned to look at his wife. He couldn't help but feel bad for how worried she must be. He had been acting crazy after all, but heck, he felt crazy. He didn't even really know how to answer her question. He didn't know the answer to it.

"I…I don't really know. All of these strange things have been happening and I don't really know how to explain it. But, I think somehow…some way…I'm maybe seeing the future?" Yeah. If Mercedes didn't think he was crazy before, that seemed to do the trick. She stared at him, blinking rapidly as she tried to process the information.

"Uh…what do you mean…see the future?" He knew how stupid he must have sounded. Saying it out loud, he definitely could tell it probably wasn't the best way to say what he wanted to say. But, what was?

"Ugh, I think I may have a gift of discernment. Like…somehow I can tell when someone is about to die." Sam paced the room, running his fingers through his hair like he had done so many times recently, almost as if it relieved some of his stress. He was finding though that all it seemed to be doing was making a terrible habit of greasing up his hair.

"Sam, you're not really making any sense. What makes you think that?" Mercedes rose to her feet, not to walk closer to Sam, but to pace in her own nervous path with her arms crossed across her chest in a tight fashion.

"People have made themselves known to me. Just shown up somehow into my life out of the blue and all of their names have had the initials I.C.U. except…" Sam trailed off as he processed the information to himself as he said it out loud. "Except it hasn't been their real names. It's almost like it's been a clue that they're the ones I need to pay attention to."

"Pay attention to? What do you mean pay attention to?" Sam could tell she was getting frustrated, but he was trying his best to explain not only to her, but to himself.

"I think…I'm supposed to save these people, 'cedes." As things finally started to become clear to Sam, he knew they still were very cloudy to Mercedes. He had held this in the whole time, not wanting her to worry, but in turn he found that he had just made things worse. He walked closer to his wife, frowning when he noticed she attempted to step away a little. He reached for her, grabbing both of her arms gently and looked into her eyes.

"Baby. I know all of this sounds insane. Trust me…for the past few days, I've felt out of my mind and…I don't know, maybe I am. But, all I know is what I feel and that's all I really can know. You're just gonna have to trust me." Mercedes looked into the eyes of her husband, trying to make sense of what he was saying. She wanted with everything in her to relax and just go with the flow like she always had, but this time was different. She was extremely concerned for Sam and for their marriage. Life had been so rough for them lately and she wanted desperately with everything in her for things to just go back to normal…back to the way things used to be.

"Sam…" Sam put his finger to her lips, stopping her from proceeding.

"Do you remember when we first decided to get married?" Mercedes nodded in response, fighting back a tear that was ready to push through. "Remember when I decided then that I wasn't going to try and make it big like you guys or go into sports like my dad wanted? I wanted to be a cop. Why did I want to do that, 'cedes?"

"Because…" a tear finally rolled down her cheek and onto her cotton pajama shirt, soaking through like a battle wound. "..because you wanted to help people..you wanted to make a difference." She looked up into Sam's eyes, a new look of understanding starting to show through.

"Exactly. I think somewhere along the way I kinda forgot that, Mercedes. I lost sight of why I wanted to do this in the first place. I remember praying to God that he show me that passion that I used to have. That he would help me to remember why I felt like this was what I needed to be doing and where we needed to be. Maybe…maybe this is like my calling or something." Mercedes smirked as she dried her tears, looking away for a minute to reflect on everything. "And I also know how much you love to roleplay cop and convict."

"Sam!" Mercedes laughed and playfully punched Sam in the arm, making him laugh in response. "I don't really know what to think about all of this. I just…I just want you to be okay. Whatever that entails."

"You don't believe me, do you?" Sam frowned. He had so hoped he had convinced Mercedes to believe what was going on was real. He had felt a twinge of relief feeling like someone was in it with him, like he wasn't so alone.

"I'm not…saying that necessarily."

"You don't have to say it." Sam sighed and turned to leave the room. He wasn't really sure what his next move was supposed to be, but he knew he definitely needed to go for a walk. As he reached and grabbed his wallet off the side table, he noticed a card fall out of it and on to the floor. He picked it up and swiftly began to read what was printed on the front.

"_Eye Candy just for You__." _His heart dropped. If he had been sleeping all night, that had meant he had dreamed about going to the club. If that was the case, why did he have this card? He swallowed hard as his heart began to beat fast in his chest. He looked down at his watch and noticed that it was nearing 7:00 in the morning. He wondered if he was too late as he glanced back towards the bedroom then back to the front door. Should he even try?

"Fuck…" Sam turned the handle and left on his blind trek to embrace his new found gift. Or at least, he attempt it.


End file.
